Actelis Networks Accelerates Broadband Rate, Reach and Reliability for Blackfoot Communications Group

Actelis Networks Accelerates Broadband Rate, Reach and Reliability for Blackfoot Communications Group

Actelis continues to lead the industry in helping telecom service providers replace their legacy T1 lines with high-performance, end-to-end Ethernet services.

FREMONT, Calif., September 28, 2010 - Actelis Networks®, the leading global supplier of Ethernet over copper solutions, continues to accelerate its efforts to ensure that service providers worldwide have the ability to reach more customers regardless if they are located in densely populated urban areas or in remote locations previously considered “hard to reach.” With Actelis’ industry-leading Ethernet in the First Mile (EFM) solutions, Blackfoot Communications Group (Blackfoot), Montana’s largest regional telecommunications service provider, is now providing significantly higher-bandwidth broadband services with greater reliability to more customers previously served by legacy T1 lines.

Blackfoot prides itself on being a deep-rooted yet forward-looking service provider for Montana and Idaho. The Missoula-based IOC, with customers across seven Western Montana counties, provides a wide range of products, including high-speed Internet, video conferencing, network design and protection, and security systems—all with a focus on expert customer service. Blackfoot also touts Western Montana’s largest private Voice over IP (VoIP) network.

Blackfoot has deployed Actelis’ Ethernet access devices (EADs), aggregation switches and the telecom industry’s first ANSI T1.417 compliant EFM repeaters. Blackfoot uses Actelis’ robust aggregation systems in central offices to provide services in more populated areas where customers are closer to the central office, while Actelis’ EFM repeaters power advanced broadband services to reach more customers further away from a central office. To support Blackfoot’s expansion into remote customer serving areas with services that include high-speed data, voice, and video services, Blackfoot is leveraging Actelis’ industry-leading rate and reach capabilities to backhaul traffic from remote DSLAMs and other integrated multiservice access platforms (IMAPs).

“For the many services Blackfoot offers, Actelis provides the best portfolio of Ethernet over copper products that are critical to delivering ubiquitous broadband services to our customers. Actelis’ aggregation systems and EADs are extremely robust, and their repeaters allow us to deliver the necessary bandwidth customers are demanding regardless of location, particularly in areas where the terrain is rough and much further out from a central office or remote terminal,” said Dave Martin, vice president of product development and chief technical officer at Blackfoot Telecommunications Group. “Actelis’ customer service philosophy also aligns with Blackfoot’s philosophy of providing expert customer support to every customer. All of these elements make Actelis an ideal partner for Blackfoot.”

“Service providers like Blackfoot are profitably meeting the demand for increased broadband services while reducing capital and operational expenses with Actelis’ DSLAM backhaul solution,” said Joe Manuele, senior vice president of worldwide sales and customer support. “By upgrading from existing T1 circuits, service providers can upgrade the bandwidth capacity between the central office and remote DSLAMs by over 10 times just by leveraging the existing copper and deliver 100Mbps of bandwidth, compared to bonded T1 lines.”

Actelis’ access products uniquely bond the copper pairs to carry 100Mbps of bandwidth whether the service is delivering high-speed Internet access to end customers or backhauling traffic from remote DSLAMs placed in central offices or remote cabinets. Complementing this solution, Actelis’ EFM repeaters reduce the number of repeaters required to cover the same distances as legacy T1 circuits, further accelerating the ubiquitous delivery of next-generation services to customers who traditionally have been out of reach to receive exciting new broadband services and IP applications.

About Blackfoot Telecommunications Group
Named after the Blackfoot River running through much of the territory it serves, the Blackfoot Telecommunications Group was originally established in 1954 as Blackfoot Telephone Cooperative. Blackfoot offers state-of-the-art telecommunications, Internet, and data solutions to customers in Missoula and throughout Montana and Idaho. Headquartered in Missoula, Montana, Blackfoot employs more than 150 Montanans. Blackfoot can be reached at 406-541-5000 or through its Web site at www.blackfoot.com.


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